Sweet and occasionally exciting book. Captures the highs and lows of family life and life in its layers. A gentle and kind read very enjoyable Thankyou

I was lucky to be able to read an advanced copy of this book courtesy of netgalley and I'm so glad. This book has a slightly different take on family dynamics as it features the struggles of 'blending families, their exes and all the trials that come along with it. An enjoyable story.

This explores the challenges of a blended family. A light and enjoyable read, full of drama. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

Well what can I say. It was a light read but explored the challenges of a blended family really well. I enjoyed it. The second book I’ve read by Moriarty and I wasn’t disappointed. Surely everyone deserves a second chance at love right?

EXCERPT: Anna sighed. 'I wanted the three of us to spend some quality time together. I think we need to make the effort to get to know Bella better. You're kind of sisters now and I want you two to be friends.'

Grace turned to face her mother. 'Let's be clear, Bella and I are not sisters in any way whatsoever. If you want to get to know her better for James's sake, fine, but I don't. She is some random person who has been dumped into my life. I didn't choose her, and I don't want, or need, to be friends with her. How would you like it if I came home with an annoying, rude woman the same age as you and said, "This is Jane. You'll be living together from now on, and you must be sisters and best friends." '

ABOUT 'YOURS, MINE, OURS': What's another branch on the family tree?

Things are finally looking up for Anna. Seventeen miserable years of marriage to man-child Connor have left her drained and ready for a new start. So when they separate, she couldn't be more thrilled to move in with James, a handsome lecturer who is everything her ex-husband is not: kind, thoughtful, and above all, reliable.

But Anna and James's kids hate living with the loved-up couple and the new set-up. Their teenage daughters - one a studious high achiever and the other a cool rich girl unbothered by grades or exams - have nothing in common. And Anna's wild football-mad nine-year-old son declares war on bookish James.

Nobody said step-parenting was easy; Anna and James are about to find out exactly how complicated it can be. With exes, new partners-of-exes and money all in the mix, home life is fast becoming a minefield and their new-found happiness hangs in the balance. Do they have what it takes to make their blended family work?

MY THOUGHTS: Blending two families is not an easy task. Everyone comes with habits, opinions, preconceptions and baggage. Children don't like change, especially when it involves parents and living arrangements. Parents tend to be protective of their own children and perhaps a little critical of the stepchildren. Moving away from familiar surroundings and friends doesn't help either.

Welcome to Anna and James world. Anna was married to Conor, and she has struggled for years to keep her family together. James was married to Ingrid, a high-flyer in the business world. Anna and Conor have two children, 15 year old science geek Grace, and nine year old tearaway Jack. James and Ingrid also have a fifteen year old daughter, Bella, used to having the best of the best and denied nothing. Anna and James are blissfully happy, excited to be starting a new life together. Their children aren't.

This is, no doubt, a common story, one which we view from all sides. We are privy to the children's discomfort at Anna and James open displays of affection; their resentment of the new partner and their child/ren. We watch as Anna and James try to negotiate new common boundaries for behaviour between their new home and their old ones, negotiating not only with the children, but with their exes.

The stress, on everyone, is astronomical and something or someone needs to give.

Moriarty has written with empathy and understanding of a difficult situation, made even more so by the economic disparity between the households. Relationships are fraught, tempers and tolerance stretched, things said which cannot be unsaid.

The characters are well crafted; not always likeable, but realistic. Millie is the voice of reason, and a thoroughly likeable character. She and Grace were the stars of the book for me. A strong young woman, she knows what she wants and takes sh*t from no-one.

Yours, Mine, Ours is an honest look at the blended family. It's amusing in places, dramatic in others. It's sad, funny and enlightening.

⭐⭐⭐.6

#YoursMineOurs #NetGalley

I: @sineadmoriartywriter @penguinrandomhouseuk

T: @sinead_moriarty @PenguinUKBooks

#contemporaryfiction #domesticdrama #romance #sliceoflife #womensfiction

THE AUTHOR: Sinéad was born and raised in Dublin where she grew up surrounded by books. Her mother is an author of children’s books. Growing up, Sinead says she was inspired by watching her mother writing at the kitchen table and then being published. From that moment on, her childhood dream was to write a novel.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Penguin General UK, Sandycove via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Yours, Mine, Ours by Sinèad Moriarty for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review is also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

More often than not families in books are of the nuclear variety, or a single mum looking for love. I've no complaints about that, but this book was a refreshing and different approach. The dating and falling in love has already happened, and this tells the tale of what happens next.......the bit we don't often get to read about, instead we hope for a happy ever after.

In real life though it's messy and complicated! And @sineadmoriartywriter does not shy away from that. When these two families blend together, the hopelessly in love parents forget that kids are complex, with a whole heap of their own needs. Anna overcompensates, James tries to tighten up the reins, not a good mix at all.

I really enjoyed this book, the chaos makes for a bit of a roller coaster ride, I'm sure reflective of real life. I loved how the children were central to the story; the writing had a younger feel in parts, bringing the children to life.

If you want an easy read, about a family with a difference, this ones for you. Perfect to cosy up with 💕

I enjoyed this book and loved all the charterers in this book and loved the story, I won't ruin this review with any spoilers, I wish the author all the best with this book
Thanks to netgalley and the publishers for the arc of this book in exchange for this review

𝗧𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝘀: single mom, single dad

This book is a roller coaster of emotions, and it is full of drama.

Sinéad Moriarty shows how two separated families come together. We meet Anna and James who are a couple and their children who are trying to become a united family. Anna has two children, 9-year-old Jack and 15-year-old Grace, and James, a 15-year-old girl named Bella.

This book showed me another perspective of the single parent trope. In most books with this trop, children are very sweet and have an immediate connection with love interest, but here everything is different. You have to be patiently loaded because everything will surely annoy you, especially Anna's apologies for everything her son does because he is only 9 years old and that he is "traumatized" by the separation between her and her ex-husband. I mean, okay, I understand he's 9 years old and he's definitely affected by this situation but she doesn't have to say this EVERY TIME to James when a conflict arises between him and Jack. Nor did the conflict between Bella and Anna irritate me as much as Anna's apology to James for ANYTHING Jack caused.

I don't even want to talk about Connor. He is an ASSHOLE and only at the end of the book he changes his attitude.

These are the only things that irritated me, but otherwise everything was ok. I really liked how the author portrayed this situation and showed that not everything is easy when you try to unite two families, with different growth styles and rules.

Thank you NetGalley, Penguin General UK, and Sinéad Moriarty for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

A thoroughly enjoyable easy read . It is a book that can enjoyed on a rainy day with a cup of coffee or a sunny day with a large glass of wine .
The story is based around two families trying to merge together as one and the ending is a bit of a forgone conclusion .That said it is a good holiday read .

*3.5 stars*
I really struggled with book, it wasn’t the writing per say, it was almost like waiting for the train wreak to happen….hands over eyes. I think it was the subject matter and characters that made it such a difficult book to read. And in all honesty, I believe this could be flying so close to the truth in many second relationships and that is why it was hard to read.

Anna and James have decided to move in together and try to work with a blended family. James has a high maintenance, 15 year old daughter Bella, who spends every 2nd weekend with her mother and her high flying partner and Anna’s marriage to man/child Connor has been over for a while in her mind. It’s just that Connor doesn’t believe it nor does their 10 year old son Jack.
And that is where I believe the problem is! Anna went from one relationship, straight to another, expecting her children to understand and accept. Luckily for Anna she also has a very mature 15yr old daughter who saw sense in many things.

I really could go on more about the characters, behaviour and situations that I don’t really agree on but that would just spoil the story. It’s worth a read and I’m just grateful that my family has not gone through all that.
Thankyou to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy to read.

I’d like to thank Penguin General UK, Sandycove and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Yours, Mine, Ours’ written by Sinead Moriarty in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

When Anna and James fall in love they make the decision to move in together hoping that Anna’s children Grace and Jack and James’s daughter Bella will become friends. But it’s not easy being part of a ‘combined’ family and after eight months of arguments tough decisions need to be made.

‘Yours, Mine, Ours’ is a well-written emotive drama about two people in love who want to share a life together but make mistakes as they try to please everybody but end up being unhappy themselves. It’s an excellent novel with a host of appealing characters that add a greater dimension to the story, it touches on the breakdown of a marriage and how living with new families can affect children, and also how teenagers can have the additional problem of wanting to fit in with the popular students at school. I found Anna and James interesting and although they didn’t get much right, especially the way Anna dealt with Jack who was obnoxious most of the time, and Anna’s ex-husband Conor who acted as a spoilt brat all of the time, but we all make mistakes, and I ended the story hoping that Anna and James can sort out their problems and live happily ever after.

I have been a big fan of Sinead Moriarty for years and was delighted to get the opportunity to read her newest book. I loved Yours, Mine and Ours from start to finish and simply couldn’t put it down!

I was looking forward to reading this because I loved the author's previous books. Unfortunately, this was not one of my favorites. I would give it 2.5 stars. So many things bothered me in this story, probably because it reminded me of my childhood and not in a good way. I would have people with children read this if they were thinking about divorcing, so they know what not to do with their children. They should do the exact opposite of everything Anna and James did throughout the book. Did James and Anna think everything would be unicorns and rainbows? Anna left her husband and moves immediately in with James. She jumps from one problem into another. She moves her children in with a complete stranger. I don't know why she didn't get an apartment with her children and date James. No on got to know each other. James and Anna tried to force everyone to like each other. I HATED that they constantly referred to each other as step (mom, dad, sister and brother), they weren't married. Anna wasn't even divorced yet. Anna and James equally drove me crazy. Both made excuses for their rude/misbehaved children. James boohooing because they can't go out to dinner and have loud sex. Anna would allow Jack to get away with murder and then say he's only ten. He's ten, not five. He's old enough not to act like a brat all day long. Jack's birthday party was ridiculous. I would have have left Anna after she didn't seem to care that her son purposely shot her boyfriend. Also, the ball incident in the Science Gallery. I blame Anna. Conor didn't help with they way he acted. He was a manchild who didn't want to grow up and take responsibility for anything. Bella was just as bad as Jack. Milly and Grace were the best part of the book. They were the most sensible and could see how immature everyone acted. It's sad when a fifteen year old is smarter than the adults. There were some funny parts, like when Jacks walks into the bathroom to pee while James is showering.

Recommend giving the book a try. Even though it sounds like I hated the book, I didn't. I enjoyed the book but didn't like most of the characters and their actions. I hated how horrible everyone behaved. Look forward to reading more books by the author.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Penguin General UK through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Anna and James are trying to blend their families. Its not going too well. Anna’s ex husband is trying hard to influence their son Jack against James and James’ daughter is openly hostile to Anna. This is the story of families trying to make a difficult situation work. I really enjoyed this story.

When Anna meets James she realises she has a second chance at happiness after spending years in an unhappy marriage with Conor. All they have to do is blend their families, Anna's two kids, Grace and Jack and James's teenage daughter, Bella. But Anna and James soon realise it's not going to be as easy as they thought.
I love Sinead Moriarty, she is definitely my favourite Irish fiction writer. She writes the most relatable characters that you fall in love with. I was hooked on Anna and James and their families stories. A really lovely read.

Yours, Mine , Ours is another fantastic read by Sinead Moriarty. I have to admit that I’m usually a psychological / crime thriller type of reader but once I hear this author has a new book out it’s a definite must read for me. As soon as I’d finished the first chapter of this book I just knew I was going to love it. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough to find out what was going to happen. This book made me laugh in places and at times made me cry. Just an absolutely wonderful read .

I’m sorry to say that I struggled with this book, especially the writing style which I found immature and childish in bits. I had liked the premise of the story and it does give real insight into a blended family but it would put anyone off ever doing it the way this is wrote, it all sounds so awful, maybe if the characters had been a bit nicer to take to, Jack is just awful and what he gets away with is ridiculous. Sorry but this just wasn’t for me, thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this early copy.

I really enjoyed this, such a lovely read. I couldn’t put it down. It made me cry, laugh, feel frustrated and hopeful. Your immediately drawn into the story.

Anna and James meet and fall in love after previous relationships ended and decide to move in together with their children to make one big happy blended family.

I enjoyed the style of writing, how the relationships in the authors story are so believable and at times relatable. The characters are well written, some are more annoying than others. I enjoyed reading how a blended family struggles to adjust to their new norm and the difficulties the two families face when they come to live together.

It’s a great domestic drama, with a storyline that so many people can relate to. I definitely recommend.

Thanks to #NetGallery #PenguinGeneralUK #SinéadMoriarty for an ARC of #YoursMineOurs in exchange for an honest review.

This book demonstrates the reality of blended families.

The storyline is realistic, engaging and enjoyable.

The story
Anna has left her lazy husband Conor and is moving with her daughter Grace and son Jack to live with her new man James and his daughter Bella. The new blended family is a disaster. Bella isn’t used to Anna’s parenting style. Jack is a boisterous 10 year old who repeats his father’s words about Anna and James. Only Grace holds in her thoughts to avoid conflict.

My thoughts
I really struggled with the poor choices most of the adults in this story made. As a mom to a ten and seven year old and child of divorced parents, I can’t think how pulling your children out of a family home and straight into a blended family would ever be anything but an emotional disaster. While I was reading this, I was really trying to think what the author is trying to say, and it kind of shines a spotlight on a “what not to do”. There are two characters that stand out for me, Grace and Milly. Both are wise beyond their years, thoughtful and emotionally savvy. The two redeem the rest of the bad behaviour.